Kaua'i Marathon F60-64: Nakazawa Claims the Age Group in the Hawaiian Heat

• Chikako Nakazawa won the F60-64 age group in 5:53:02 (13:28/mi), finishing nearly 27 minutes clear of second place.
• Theresa Chazick and Alison Dye crossed in a razor-thin battle for second: both recorded 6:20:00 but Chazick edged ahead by just 0.48 seconds.
• Rosemarie Shepley ran in the top 100 among all women through the opening miles before fading — she was 97th among women early, 114th by the finish.
• Six women completed the F60-64 field under 77°F skies and 69% humidity on Kauai's demanding course.

Chikako Nakazawa put the F60-64 result beyond doubt from the front, moving steadily through the women's field across the entire race — from 104th among women at the first checkpoint all the way to 88th by the finish. At 13:28 per mile over 26.2 miles in that humid Hawaiian air, she was the class of the age group, and her 67th-fastest split among women on the final stretch from 24.15 miles to the finish showed she wasn't merely surviving — she was still racing.

The real drama in the age group unfolded behind her. Theresa Chazick of Goodrich, MI and Alison Dye of Flushing, MI ran virtually the same race, arriving at the finish in what the clock displayed as an identical 6:20:00. But the timing chips told a sharper story: Chazick crossed 0.48 seconds ahead, claiming second. Chazick had posted the 99th-fastest split among women on the 22.25-to-24.15-mile segment, while Dye's strongest comparative stretch came earlier, with the 102nd-fastest women's split from the half marathon mark to 22.25 miles. Two athletes, one result — separated by less than half a second.

Amy Patrick-Melin held a steady position through the middle miles, finishing fourth in 6:27:20. Rosemarie Shepley told a different story — she was the 97th woman through the early miles, a strong opening in the context of the full women's field, but the back half of the course took its toll and she slipped to 114th among women by the finish, crossing fifth in 6:34:24. Patricia Sklenka rounded out the six-finisher age group in 6:50:00.